Colombian minister responds to extradition

Colombia's Minister of Defense Rodrigo Rivera said Venezuela is not a sanctuary for members of guerrilla groups who are hiding in the neighboring country. Rivera said Venezuelan and Colombian authorities have been working together to detain and extradite captured guerrilla members of the National Liberation Army and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, better knows by its Spanish acronym FARC, Caracol Radio reported Tuesday. He said the relationship between the two countries is on the right track after they both signed a bilateral agreement to combat drug trafficking in April. "We're talking about a resilient border where we have to act together to face the challenge of transnational crime," said Rivera. Rivera compared the recent arrest of the guerrilla group FARC's right hand man, Julian Conrado, to the relationship between the two countries. Conrado was captured in Venezuela in June of last year and is waiting for the proper procedures and protocols to be extradited to Colombia.